I’m also going to be working on more new 4K reviews this afternoon, so watch for them to be posted here on the site later today and tomorrow morning. We’ll mention them here in tomorrow’s My Two Cents column.

By the way, I wanted to invite you all to follow The Bits on Facebook and Twitter if you don’t already. More importantly, I wanted to invite you to follow me personally (Bill Hunt) on Facebook and Twitter, if you’d like as well. Do keep in mind, however, that on my own personal pages I tend to talk more about other things of interest to me than just Blu-ray, 4K, and DVD specifically – films, great books, science topics, spaceflight, history, technology, and the like. You’re always welcome to communicate with me that way, particularly via Facebook Messenger, as e-mail these days seems to be inundated with junk and SPAM. Maybe I’ll see you there. [Read on here…]

In release news today... Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has just announced the 5/2 Blu-ray and DVD release of Michael Dudok de Wit’s animated The Red Turtle, which was produced by Studio Ghibli. Extras will include 3 featurettes (The Birth of The Red Turtle, The Secrets of The Red Turtle, and AFI Fest Q&A with Director Michael Dudok de Wit).

Sony has also just officially announced the Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD release of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter on 5/16, with the Digital HD release due on 5/2. The Blu-ray versions will include 3 featurettes (Explore the Hive, The Badass Trinity & The Women of Resident Evil, and Stunts & Weaponry), a Retaliation Mode, and a sneak peek of Resident Evil: Vendetta.

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has also just officially set a Fifty Shades Darker: Unrated Edition for release on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on 5/9, with a Digital HD release set for 4/25. Extras on all editions will include deleted scenes and 3 featurettes (A Tease to Fifty Shades Freed, Writing Darker, and Dark Reunion). The Blu-ray editions will add 4 more featurettes (including A Darker Direction, New Threats, The Masquerade, and Intimate with Darker).

Kino’s new animated titles, Sheriff Hoot Kloot and The Blue Racer, are now available for pre-order on Amazon. You can do so by clicking on the cover artwork below. Speaking of Kino, the company has just announced that it’s going to be releasing Alfred Hitchcock’s The Paradine Case (1947) on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/30.

And Arrow Academy has announced its U.K. Blu-ray releases for June, including The Sorrow and the Pity documentary (1969 – Blu-ray and DVD) and Seijun Suzuki’s The Taisho Trilogy (Zigeunerweisen, Kagero-za, Yumeji – 1980, 1981, 1991 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 6/5, One-Eyed Jacks (1961 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 6/12, and Aquarius (2016 – Blu-ray and DVD) on 6/26.

Here’s a look at some new Blu-ray and 4K artwork for titles mentioned above and more (click to pre-order the titles on Amazon.com if available)...

All right, we’ve got a bunch of interesting release news today here at The Bits…

The big news today is that 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has just set Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and Rise of the Planet of the Apes for 4K Ultra HD release on 6/13 (SRP $39.99 each). There’s no word yet on extras, but presumably they’ll include the previous Blu-ray editions with all of those extras. This certainly confirms what we already knew, which is that War for the Planet of the Apes is going to be released on the format as well later this year.

Also on the 4K front today, Universal has just set Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2 for release on the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray format on 6/6 (SRP $39.98 each). As you may remember, we first revealed that these titles were coming to the format back on 2/14 (you can see that post here). [Read on here…]

In other news, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has just set Jee-Woon Kim’s The Age of Shadows for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/2. This was South Korea’s Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film.

Lionsgate has now set John Lee Hancock’s The Founder for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 4/18. The film stars Michael Keaton as McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc.

Mill Creek Entertainment is releasing Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone on Blu-ray on 5/2.

Severin Films has set The Other Hell, Cathy’s Curse, and Dark Waters for Blu-ray and DVD release on 4/11.

Launch Over has set Blood of the Tribades for Blu-ray release on 4/30.

PBS will release To Walk Invisible: The Bronte Sisters on Blu-ray and DVD on 4/11.

Here’s something cool for anime fans: Freedom: The Complete OVA Series is finally coming back into U.S. release on Blu-ray on 4/25 from Discotech Media.

Blue Underground has set a double feature Blu-ray of Blood of Fu Manchu and Castle of Fu Manchu for release on 5/30 (SRP $29.98).

Virgil Films has set the Spike TV documentary I Am Heath Ledger for release on Blu-ray on 5/23.

Paramount is re-issuing The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, The Godfather Part III, Untouchables, and Chinatown on Blu-ray and DVD on 5/9. These are simply re-issues, so don’t look for new features.

Olive Films is releasing The World’s Most Beautiful Swindlers on Blu-ray and DVD on 4/25.

Kino Lorber Studio Classics has announced a pair of new DePatie-Freleng animated Blu-ray and DVD titles for release on 5/16, including Sheriff Hoot Kloot (1973-1974) and The Blue Racer (1972-1974). Each set will include 17 newly-restored classic cartoons. Kino has also set Those Redheads from Seattle (1953) for release on Blu-ray 3D/2D and DVD on 5/9. The Indian Fighter (1955), Return of Sabata (1972), Adios Sabata (1971), Making Contact (1985), and Marjorie Morningstar (1958) are also coming on that day on Blu-ray and/or DVD. And newly revealed as “coming soon” from Kino are Junior Bonner (1972) and Louis L’Amour’s Shalako (1968).

Also today, Shout! Factory has set The Ticket for Blu-ray and DVD release on 6/6.

And Well Go USA has set Jackie Chan’s Railroad Tigers for Blu-ray and DVD release on 6/20.

That’s all for this week, but we’ve got a bunch of new reviews coming next week, and some new hardware reviews too. So have a great weekend and we’ll see you then!

All right, the big news today is that Network Distributing Ltd. in the U.K. has announced the Region B release of Gerry Anderson’s UFO: The Complete Series on Blu-ray on 11/14 (SRP £69.99). The series is restored in high-definition and includes all 26 episodes with audio in the original mono as well as new 5.1 mixes, and a ton of new and legacy special features. Among them is a brand new feature-length documentary called From Earth to the Moon, featuring interviews, archive video, audio, and stills (some never-before-seen). There’s also the new The Women of UFO documentary, a newly-produced SHADO “briefing film” called Identified: SHADO New Recruits Briefing, textless episode title backgrounds, textless end titles, stock footage, TV spots, extra footage for Identified and Exposed, unused footage from Timelash and The Long Sleep, Italian trailers, audio commentaries on Identified (with Gerry Anderson) and Sub-Smash (with Ed Bishop), S.I.D. Computer Voice Session and audio outtakes for these sessions and Kill Straker!, an archive Ed Bishop audio interview from 1996, the Tomorrow Today: Future Fashions with Sylvia Anderson featurette, extensive image galleries (with previously unseen images), and an exclusive 600-page book on the making of the series by archive television historian Andrew Pixley. [Read on here…]

Sadly, there is as yet no U.S. distributor for this or Network’s Space: 1999 – Season Two Blu-ray, and this set will be Region B locked. Still, if you have an all-region capable player, this box looks pretty terrific. We will be doing a review here at The Bits when the set becomes available. Meanwhile, you can see the cover artwork above left and below. And check out the official Network pre-order page here.

In other release news today, Kino Lorber has just set a Blu-ray double feature of Porky’s II: The Next Day (1983) and Porky’s Revenge (1985) for on 12/13. The company has also announced that they’re working on TBA Blu-ray and DVD releases of Framed (1975), Chamber of Horrors (1940), the Joan Collins films The Stud (1978) and The Bitch (1979), The Scar (1948 – aka Hollow Triumph), and more DePatie/Freleng cartoons (on 2/21/17) including The Blue Racer (1972-1974 – 17 cartoons) and Sheriff Hoot Kloot (1973-1974 – 17 cartoons).

The Warner Archive has just released Clint Eastwood’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997) and The Originals: The Complete Third Season (2015-16) on Blu-ray. Also newly-available on MOD DVD is Mike Tyson Mysteries Uncensored: Season Two, and newly back in print on MOD DVD are The Hollywood Legends of Horror Collection, The Leopard Man & Ghost Ship (1943), Isle of the Dead (1945) & Bedlam (1946), The Guyver (1991), The Guyver 2 (1994), and The Mangler (1995).

Also today, Codeblack Films and Lionsgate have set Mr. Church for Blu-ray and DVD release on 10/25.

Panic Ventures, Huston Ranch Media, and CAV have set The ID for Blu-ray release on 10/25 as well.

And our friends at Blue Underground have set Jess Franco’s 99 Women: 3-Disc Unrated Director’s Cut for Blu-ray/DVD/CD combo release on 12/13 (SRP $39.98). Also coming that day is the 99 Women: 3-Disc Limited Edition for Blu-ray/Blu-ray/CD combo (SRP $49.98), which also includes the “notorious French version on Blu-ray” in addition to the Unrated Director’s Cut. Only 2000 copies of the Limited Edition will be available.

And finally today, this might be of interest to some of you: Elon Musk has just announced the long-awaited SpaceX plan to take human beings to Mars in the next decade. It’s pretty audacious but, just as interesting, his preview video recalls the Walt Disney “science factual” animated documentaries of the 1950s – Man in Space, Mars and Beyond, etc. It’s pretty audacious – do check it out here below (and be sure to watch it in full 1080p HD)...